<p>It may sound bizarre and ridiculously superstitious—cot employed to catch a thief. But, it is quiet popular and rather widely believed in some parts of Odisha. Sometimes, even the administration remains silent and refuses to initiate action against perpetrators of such a <br />stupid practice fearing backlash. <br /><br />Call it investigative journalism or overenthusiasm. A couple of months back a group of print and TV journalists based in Nayagarh town in coastal Nayagarh district rushed to Dimiripatna on getting a ti- off that a cot “is being pressed into service” to catch a thief after the police had failed to crack the case. But media men were literally caught napping and the reception they received was too much for them. They had to beat a hasty retreat to save themselves from the hostile crowd. Their valuables were also looted.<br /><br />The tip off was that the villagers had summoned a tantrik (god man) as the <br />police had failed to solve the Rs 1.3 lakh theft case in the village. Though it is widely practised in many villages in Odisha, media men were excited that they would be able to cover the interesting development and use it in their newspapers and TV channels.<br /><br />All was well and the villagers kept quiet as the god man began puja on a wooden cot. Then he asked four persons to lift the “sacred cot” and carry it on their shoulders. The tantrik claimed that the cot had acquired special powers after the pooja and would “drag” the four men to the suspect.<br /><br />The trouble started when the journalists started filming the event. The infuriated villagers physically assaulted media men. The local police reached the spot on hearing about the incident and arrested the four people carrying the cot. In the melee, the tantrik had managed to give the slip.<br /><br />When the police were about to leave the place, the villagers gathered and attacked them in a bid to free the four arrested men. A pitched battle followed between both the sides and finally the police had their say and took four men from the village.<br /><br />It is not an isolated case. Such incidents have been reported from several districts in the recent past, particularly from the coastal and southern regions.<br /><br />Many allege that in a majority of such incidents police turn a blind eye. Is the allegation true? Some top officials, on condition of anonymity, told Deccan Herald that they play it safe. In fact, one senior official cited an incident of how the police got into trouble for acting tough.<br /><br />To prove his point, he narrated the incident that had taken place sometime back in southern Ganjam, the home district of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik. The locals had thrashed a villager and thrown him out of the village, holding him responsible for a theft after he was “identified” as the culprit by a “sacred” cot.<br /><br />When he lodged a complaint, a police party reached the village for an inquiry only to be welcomed with hand-made bombs, for which Ganjam villages are notorious, and lathis. As the situation went out of control, the police were forced to resort to firing and one villager was killed and a few others sustained injuries. <br />Even before an inquiry, the officer-in-charge of the local police station was placed under suspension. “Under such circumstances who will initiate stern action against people spreading superstitions,” asked the senior cop.<br /><br />Rationalists fear that the incidents would only increase if the state government fails to step in and initiate stringent action against persons involved in such <br />superstitious act. <br /><br />“The cot catching the thief exercise is nothing but a big fraud. It needs to be stopped immediately. Otherwise, we are heading for a dangerous time,” said Gangadhar Sahu, a member of Odisha Rationalists’ Association. <br /><br />Some people point out to the inefficiency of the police to track down the culprits in burglary and theft cases which forces people, particularly in rural areas to opt for other alternatives like cot-catching-the-thief exercise. “The police hardly take any interest in burglary and theft cases unless one is a VIP. Therefore, people often are left with no alternative but to try other methods to recover their stolen valuables,” said a Bhubaneswar resident, who claimed to have witnessed such an exercise in the capital city a couple of years back. If his claim is true, then the bizarre exercise is not confined to rural areas. It has spread its wings to urban centres too where a majority of people is considered to be “educated and modern”.<br /><br />The men in khaki, however, disagree on the police inefficiency charge. “In many theft and burglary cases, the police crack them and recover valuables besides <br />arresting the culprits. There could be instances of negligence here and there. But that does not mean people will fall back on superstitious exercises like the cot catching a thief which is dangerous for society,” commented a senior cop in Bhubaneswar. </p>.<p>Top police officials also agree that these superstitious practices can be stopped with tougher actions, which is possible with the full backing of politicians, particularly those in power. But that never happens. <br /><br />Rationalists, therefore, feel that there is a need for a coordinated effort from every quarters to stop the superstitious exercise like the cot-catching-the-thief act. “There is an urgent need for a joint effort from the government, the police and <br />activists to stop this type of superstitious acts before it is too late,” said Gangadhar Sahu added. <br /><br /></p>
<p>It may sound bizarre and ridiculously superstitious—cot employed to catch a thief. But, it is quiet popular and rather widely believed in some parts of Odisha. Sometimes, even the administration remains silent and refuses to initiate action against perpetrators of such a <br />stupid practice fearing backlash. <br /><br />Call it investigative journalism or overenthusiasm. A couple of months back a group of print and TV journalists based in Nayagarh town in coastal Nayagarh district rushed to Dimiripatna on getting a ti- off that a cot “is being pressed into service” to catch a thief after the police had failed to crack the case. But media men were literally caught napping and the reception they received was too much for them. They had to beat a hasty retreat to save themselves from the hostile crowd. Their valuables were also looted.<br /><br />The tip off was that the villagers had summoned a tantrik (god man) as the <br />police had failed to solve the Rs 1.3 lakh theft case in the village. Though it is widely practised in many villages in Odisha, media men were excited that they would be able to cover the interesting development and use it in their newspapers and TV channels.<br /><br />All was well and the villagers kept quiet as the god man began puja on a wooden cot. Then he asked four persons to lift the “sacred cot” and carry it on their shoulders. The tantrik claimed that the cot had acquired special powers after the pooja and would “drag” the four men to the suspect.<br /><br />The trouble started when the journalists started filming the event. The infuriated villagers physically assaulted media men. The local police reached the spot on hearing about the incident and arrested the four people carrying the cot. In the melee, the tantrik had managed to give the slip.<br /><br />When the police were about to leave the place, the villagers gathered and attacked them in a bid to free the four arrested men. A pitched battle followed between both the sides and finally the police had their say and took four men from the village.<br /><br />It is not an isolated case. Such incidents have been reported from several districts in the recent past, particularly from the coastal and southern regions.<br /><br />Many allege that in a majority of such incidents police turn a blind eye. Is the allegation true? Some top officials, on condition of anonymity, told Deccan Herald that they play it safe. In fact, one senior official cited an incident of how the police got into trouble for acting tough.<br /><br />To prove his point, he narrated the incident that had taken place sometime back in southern Ganjam, the home district of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik. The locals had thrashed a villager and thrown him out of the village, holding him responsible for a theft after he was “identified” as the culprit by a “sacred” cot.<br /><br />When he lodged a complaint, a police party reached the village for an inquiry only to be welcomed with hand-made bombs, for which Ganjam villages are notorious, and lathis. As the situation went out of control, the police were forced to resort to firing and one villager was killed and a few others sustained injuries. <br />Even before an inquiry, the officer-in-charge of the local police station was placed under suspension. “Under such circumstances who will initiate stern action against people spreading superstitions,” asked the senior cop.<br /><br />Rationalists fear that the incidents would only increase if the state government fails to step in and initiate stringent action against persons involved in such <br />superstitious act. <br /><br />“The cot catching the thief exercise is nothing but a big fraud. It needs to be stopped immediately. Otherwise, we are heading for a dangerous time,” said Gangadhar Sahu, a member of Odisha Rationalists’ Association. <br /><br />Some people point out to the inefficiency of the police to track down the culprits in burglary and theft cases which forces people, particularly in rural areas to opt for other alternatives like cot-catching-the-thief exercise. “The police hardly take any interest in burglary and theft cases unless one is a VIP. Therefore, people often are left with no alternative but to try other methods to recover their stolen valuables,” said a Bhubaneswar resident, who claimed to have witnessed such an exercise in the capital city a couple of years back. If his claim is true, then the bizarre exercise is not confined to rural areas. It has spread its wings to urban centres too where a majority of people is considered to be “educated and modern”.<br /><br />The men in khaki, however, disagree on the police inefficiency charge. “In many theft and burglary cases, the police crack them and recover valuables besides <br />arresting the culprits. There could be instances of negligence here and there. But that does not mean people will fall back on superstitious exercises like the cot catching a thief which is dangerous for society,” commented a senior cop in Bhubaneswar. </p>.<p>Top police officials also agree that these superstitious practices can be stopped with tougher actions, which is possible with the full backing of politicians, particularly those in power. But that never happens. <br /><br />Rationalists, therefore, feel that there is a need for a coordinated effort from every quarters to stop the superstitious exercise like the cot-catching-the-thief act. “There is an urgent need for a joint effort from the government, the police and <br />activists to stop this type of superstitious acts before it is too late,” said Gangadhar Sahu added. <br /><br /></p>